Staying motivated?

[AxFBam]

I figured this would be the place to vent.

After I sold my s10, I bought my 87 4x4 around a year ago. Great truck drive-train wise, strong 350 never had a lick of problems, she needed a bed and some fenders I figured what the hell no prob on that fix.

Im pretty sure some of you guys have had the same luck as I have, It seems every time I do something positive to the truck, something worse happens to it!

It all started with the fender, replaced it, then neutral safety switch went out, thank god I found this website(found out how to diagnose it here).

Replaced the bed, sending unit went out, was fine since we have been slow on work ill just run on the passenger tank alone (dual tank truck). Then the passenger tank sending unit went out!

Well all that was fine replaced without a problem, I really got into the truck once I started replacing seeing yalls pictures, just gave me more ideas of how I wanted my square to look!

replaced the grill with a billet, took off the ugly last owners botched up brush guard, found a very nice original bumper with push bumpers, replaced chrome piece that runs the square of the grill. I primered the truck out, she was really coming together!

Well, I let a buddy of mine barrow her the other day to haul his boat the the lake since his truck is in the shop. Welp he ended up hitting a horse on the way there.

Completely demolished the front end, Grill, Bumper, Hood, both Fenders, Radiator,and put some nice dents in the driver side, including the door and bed, of course no-one would own up the the horse being theirs.

So now im struck replacing it all over again, just once it got to finally starting the look how I wanted her to.

So I guess my question is, I mean what do you guys do to stay motivated when stuff just goes down the drain? I mean I love the truck to death, But damn does it suck to have to do it all again!

[AntiGov]

around here, open range you would have to pay for the horse too! will insurance help?

[Space Monkey]

I'm new but I've had some hiccups so far.

For me it's the sense of fulfillment I get from making something work with my own hands and learning how to fix and maintain my own vehicle. Makes me feel capable and self sufficient. I can definitely see how it gets frustrating though.

Sucks about your truck, bro. Your buddy isn't going to help you with the repairs? Seems like he should.

[AxFBam]

Insurance aint going to pay nothing, just had liability on it, my fault. My buddy aint really said nothing about it since it happened, so I am on my own on this one.

[Space Monkey]

Not much of a buddy :/

[INSIDIOUS '86]

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[lilpoindexter]

Your buddy is an ass.

[Billy81]

Sounds like one of my ex-buddy's, i let him borrow my 76 C20 to haul some things and the thanks i got for it was a smashed up front end caused by him plowing into it with a hyster. He had the nerve to bring it back late at night while i was sleeping and left the keys in it and took off without saying a word. Like AxFBam i only had liability on it so i was stuck with the bill but he had a nice 77 burb parked at a friends house and i went and stole every part on it that i needed to fix my truck. I don't recommend doing that because you could get in a lot of legal trouble but i was very angry at the time and didn't care. I was getting my truck fixed one way or the other and he was paying for it..lol

[Space Monkey]

Gangsta.

[motornut]

he'd be an ex friend
driver is responsible for what happens when driving

staying motivated,
I always am shopping for another "whole" one (just in case lol)
or parts of one,i also search out parts for others
I do local car shows,meeting people and checking out rides
thinking up new ideas

[jjzepplin]

If he aint got the money to help you fix it he should give you the boat til he does!

[Shyguy]

That is some bad luck you have had there.

It is hard to stay motivated when working on old trucks because when you start working on them you will see something else you want to do.

I am lucky I have a friend that parts out and sells the era of truck I normally have, 67-72. He is very reasonable when he is selling me parts and on occasion has given me some.

I am new to the square model trucks so I am going to have to look for a source of new and used parts.

It is hard to keep motivated I will admit, but this site helps and so does talking to people that have the same era of truck in your area. I have met a lot of people at car shows that have these old trucks and we share experiences.

It helps if you have some one to work with on occassion. My son, who is 47, and I often work on trucks together and trade parts.

As long as you can keep your truck in a running state it is not real bad, but if you do a complete build like we did no my '67 keeping motivated is pretty hard.

Here is some things that keep me motivated, I have no truck payment, my insurance is cheaper, I have some one to work with at times and it feels good to drive these old truck.

[gchemist]

Even if you don't have full coverage, any other driver probably has full coverage on another vehicle. Call his insurance company. It's covered like a rental car. If you don't want to be involved, have your insurance call his insurance. Any claim will probably cause friction though!!

For me, compliments keep me motivated. I was filling up Thur at a gas station. I was waiting for a diesel truck to move so I could pull up. I was afraid of running out of fuel in one tank but I kept it running. On the opposite side is a four door Chevy truck full of guys from a construction site. Passenger yells out "nice truck". Then everybody compliments my truck. Guys says, "I'm back to El Paso to bring mine to Austin". All ask what under the hood. I say ZZ4. They ask each other what's a ZZ4? I say it's a Corvette motor.

[Restrorob]

I can't say I know how you feel, Because I don't...... When I got my first car at 17 I decided then, My azz was the only one allowed in the drivers seat of my vehicles. That was 35 yrs ago and it's still implemented today......

[Skunksmash]

I don't think I would let even a close friend or family member borrow my truck. Or my other vehicles. Some things are just asking too much. Gotta learn to say no. However, as for motivation, you know you'll just want another one if you don't fix this one. You know you will. you'll be looking at them all the time so you'd just as well fix it and get it over with. Hope that helps.

[meatwagon83]

my wife doesnt even drive my truck!

[1985_C10]

Originally Posted by Restrorob

I can't say I know how you feel, Because I don't...... When I got my first car at 17 I decided then, My azz was the only one allowed in the drivers seat of my vehicles. That was 35 yrs ago and it's still implemented today......

yep!

[INSIDIOUS '86]

There was one time I was losing motivation on my truck. The whole front end was off and the doors were off and seat was out so I just got the engine running. No exhaust and sh was half there. I got a milk crate and bucked my seatbelt (safety first) and tore down the road. Scared the crap out of the neighbors and it was dievantly fun. Kept me motivated to finish it. Now I do that all the time with it together. The neighbors don't complain. They know how loud it was haha.
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[bojak]

That is why i don't loan anything i will be upset about not getting back. Being a reformed carpenter i learned it with tools but i apply it to all things at this point. Like i tell my wife, "No is not a dirty word." Your freind is no freind if he won't make it right. Good luck and stay motivated. You loved it before, if you fix it you will again.

[Shyguy]

Here is a true story. I loaned my '72 GMC to my brother-in-law years ago and it was almost 6 months before I could find him and get it back.

I only loan any of my vehicles to my oldest son and my youngest brother. I know they would fix them if they broke them, that is just how they are.

[bikeman59]

We all lose motivation, but there are a couple of things that keep me going.

1. Because my truck is not my DD, I don't have to be in a rush to fix it. I have a plan and a schedule, but I've trained myself to be very flexible with both. That takes a lot of pressure off me.

2. I'm doing my current build in phases. I try to stay very realistic as to what each phase is and what it isn't. I know the truck will not be show worthy after phase 1, which is OK. By the time I get to phase 3, it will be, so I'm willing to wait until then. I try to keep things simple and realistic.

3. Meeting local truck guys and viewing this site are big motivators for me. I never get tired of other's build pics and I love swapping stories with local truck owners. All of that helps me keep my eye on my goals.

Hope some of this helps. As for lending trucks and tools, there are a lot of opinions on that. And you know the old saying about opinions!

[Skunksmash]

Originally Posted by Shyguy

Here is a true story. I loaned my '72 GMC to my brother-in-law years ago and it was almost 6 months before I could find him and get it back.

I only loan any of my vehicles to my oldest son and my youngest brother. I know they would fix them if they broke them, that is just how they are.

Them's fightin' actions! Hope you let your fists teach him a good lesson. That's theft.

[rusty76]

For me it is hard to be motivated. My job is physical and it tires you out both physically and mentally. I don't work a eight hour job either. Some days I get off when I am supposed to do and some days I get home as the sun sets. I own a house so I've got tons of chores to keep up with. I mow from April to November. Get up leaves from October till middle of December. The days get short on me and I don't get alot of extra time to do what I'd like. Throw in sports for my stepson and taking care of helping my mom and I don't have a ton of time to be motivated. I see guys on here who seem to have a bunch of time on their hands. But I know that's rarely the case. I don't know too many people who are into what I am so that hurts alittle too. Mostly I'm on my own so I have to do the work myself and hope to get good info from others.

But what keeps me motivated is the same thing that got me motivated almost 15 years ago I fell in love with my ole '76. It wasn't perfect and it wasn't pratical but it was right. I could drive it anywhere and do what ever I needed to. I didn't have to worry about idiots with shopping cart syndrome and what the girls thought. My truck was cool. I felt real. And all this came together one afternoon on my way to one of my jobs. I pulled up to a stop light, truck rumbling and a car pulled next to me. A little kid stuck his head out the window and smiled. I gave it alittle gas smiled back and took off. I wondered if that kid didn't have the same feeling I did? I bet.

I hate to say it but your buddy could help. At the very least throw a hand in there. But people don't always do what is right.It is easier to ask for forgiveness than do what is right. That's a big problem in our world. I've always thought we should insure the driver and not the car. That way who ever is driving is held ultimately responsible. Plus I can only drive one car at a time. Good luck.